Another week, another wasted opportunity to write seriously about current affairs in this country. Oh well, here’s the news in brief.

A drugs gang have been busted for failing to grow any actually drugs. 150 marijuana plants were found by Gardai in rural Donegal before they discovered the plants were all male, meaning they don’t contain the ’high’ chemical. They’re effectively spinach. Gardai have been forced to downgrade the find from €120,000 worth of drugs to €0 of nothing. The potential weed farmers are likely to be spared jail for doing little more than arable farming. Continue reading →

ORANGE WARNING: IT’S too hot! The EU has ruled Ireland must enter Summer austerity as the heat wave continues leaving some parts of the Island hotter than popular holiday destinations and a severe shortage of paddling pools. Met Eireann’s expert Harm Luijkx accounted for the heat, it’s due to : ’long periods of sunshine every day.’ Tax the sun, tax the sun! NIB warned this day would come! Continue reading →

“I only hit him two or three times” was the explanation given by Thomas O` Connor to the gardai, after being accused of murdering his best friend by hitting him with a rock.

Thomas O` Connor, of Greystones, was accused of murdering John O Brien on June 4 2010 and has pleaded not guilty. In an interview, upon being arrested, Mr O Connor insisted “I only hit him two or three times”, but agreed, when asked, that it was possible that he had lost control during the row, during which he claims he was hit also, by the victim. O Connor is quoted as saying “ I knew I had done serious damage but I didn’t think I had killed him,”

Detective Sergeant Eamonn O Neill said that O`Connor made a map for gardaì, as it would be impossible for them to find the rock used otherwise. He also stated that the accused did not accept a solicitor and answered every question posed, even though he did not, lawfully, have to.

Deputy State Pathologist, Dr Michael Curtis examined the body and reported that a large part of the skull was shattered. He decided that O Brien died of catastrophic brain injury due to blunt force trauma to the head. This could have been caused by the rock he had been hit with.

Dr Curtis also stated that the victim had been intoxicated at the time of his death. His blood alcohol level was 236 milligrammes per 100 millilitres of blood, but he had not been taking drugs at the time of death.